"The International Ballet Festival MARIINSKY (22 March – 1 April 2012) will see the premiere of George Balanchine’s ballet A Midsummer Night’s Dream. The festival will open with a gala concert of ballet stars who were trained by the legendary teacher Gennady Naumovich Selyutsky. Among those taking part will be Igor Zelensky, Farukh Ruzimatov, Leonid Sarafanov, Yevgeny Ivanchenko and Danila Korsuntsev."

The opening night with "Jeune Homme..." and the two evenings of Bejart should prove very interesting. It seems they have pulled a lot of past performances out for this run, including Le Parc and Ratmansky's Anna Karenina, which were premiered during previous festivals.

Thanks, Catherine. Good grief, what is this...."Modern Week Festival" + 3 full-evening traditional classics, with only two Petipas, the backbone of this company? And a rehash of Ardani/Vishneva-Dialogues was predictable, similar the Ardani/Vishneva Beauty in Motion from '09. Big yawn. The biggest disappointment of all: no Balanchine Midsummer Dream. Wasn't that supposed to be the 'big draw' for the 2011 Festival, postponed one year to 2012?

Perhaps 'modern' is the 'chi-chi thing' to do nowadays if you run a ballet company in St Petersburg? Keeping up with the Nachos.

I wonder which Bejart works will be presented? Bejart's ballets' emphases are predominantly on the male ensemble and male stars. At this time, the Mariinsky doesn't have a deep well of male stars, nor is the next generation (that's there) being developed or cultivated. Moreover, the Balanchine Trustees must have vetoed "A Midsummer Night's Dream," otherwise I can't think why it's not being presented as announced last season. That in itself is (a little) embarrassing for the brand and the management having to back-peddle what was trumpeted last season. They may also be looking atthe current level of dancing, and the people who have been featured in central roles in his works as opposed to anything else. The Trust has been known to be reluctant to grant permission for Balanchine's works, and/or change their minds and rescind their permission because of dissatisfaction with management's casting decisions.

IMO I think this year's Festival program is the Mariinsky management's attempt to "keep up" with what's been going on cross-town at the Mikhailovsky Theatre under Kehkman and Nacho Duato, since the emphasis seems to be on modern dance works, and less on the bread and butter tried and true Petipa classics. Petipa's legacy has always been the raison d'etre of the Mariinsky company. This new modern slant is unknown territory for them. This is also a showcase for Vishneva's newest revue "Dialogues," dominated by a work which isn't new in any sense: Martha Graham's "Errand into the Maze."

I remember when the Festival was first initiated. The original purpose was to invite international stars to the Mariinsky Theatre and present them in the classics, as well as encourage and present brand new works (world premieres) by new and established choreographers. The latter purpose has fallen by the wasteside in recent years. A few years ago, in lieu of new works, (or even revivals), Makhar Vaziev, during the last year he was Ballet Director, gave the public a "Swan Lake" marathon for the Festival. This year's festival program, (besides the unknown Bejarts) is basically a re-tread of former seasons and better festival programs.

NN, I'm sorry not to see Midsummer Night's Dream either. My bet is they're pushing it out to the White Nights Festival (or have cancelled it altogether). I should be there then and if it is performed, I will report.

Cygne and Natalia, agreed, there is a heavy focus on modern now. I too am curious which Bejart works will be performed. I will post again when I hear.

Very strange... this is the first year another company other than the Mariinsky has had the floor for a full evening, to say nothing of two evenings. NN as you note, it would have been so exciting to see the Mariinsky dancers perform the full Bejartprograms!

The new site format is confusing: the casting at the top, but in the right hand box under "casting" it still says to be announced.

Very strange... this is the first year another company other than the Mariinsky has had the floor for a full evening, to say nothing of two evenings...The new site format is confusing: the casting at the top, but in the right hand box under "casting" it still says to be announced.

The Bejart company's appearance at this year's Festival probably happened for two reasons: a) The management had to scramble to compensate for the second loss in two seasons of the announced "A Midsummer Night's Dream," and b) there was little time for the company to sufficiently prepare the Balanchine or any Bejart work in time for the Festival. My guess is that Fateev felt that the best way to save time (and the company's "face"), would be to invite the Bejart company tout suite. This is a win-win for the Bejart Ballet Lausanne. They get prestige and more exposure.

The site format is indeed confusing; and the management's casting and internal policies remain inexplicable. I've never liked the "TBA" label and it's being used more and more. Kondaurova remains a 1st Soloist, and yet, for a little over 2 years she has been given Principal Dancer "billing," in performances. Here's the most recent example of this: http://www.mariinsky.ru/en/playbill/pla ... /3/1_1130/. This occurs for other ballets she leads and excels in, whether they're debuts (in this case for "Diamonds,") or routine performances in Principal roles. I wonder if her salary is commensurate with her billing and comparatively frequent casting. My guess is that is isn't. IMO at this stage of her career that's exploitative to say the least. This is just one of the reasons why the Mariinsky (especially under this regime), hemorrhages it's most gifted and talented dancers. It's not just the pros who leave (most recent example being Obraztsova being snapped up by the Bolshoi and others, Lobhukin, Merkuriev and even Zakharova); the three most outstanding 2011 Vaganova graduates (Smirnova, at the Bolshoi, Strelkov at the Mikhailovsky and Shapran at the Stanislavsky) each declined employment under Fateev.

Glad to see her name (Vaganova Academy graduate, Vienna State Opera Ballet, Principal) in Divertissement. I didn't recall her at all, but she appeareared at the " Dance Gala -- Tsunami Relief Benefit -- May 31 -- Paris " and was quite lovely !

("Olga Yesina graduated from the Vaganova Academy of Russian Ballet. Has performed at the Mariinsky Theatre in roles including Odette-Odile in Petipa and Ivanov’s Swan Lake, Calliope in George Balanchine’s Apollo, the Queen of the Dryads in Alexander Gorsky’s Don Quixote and the Lilac Fairy in Marius Petipa’s The Sleeping Beauty. Since 2006 Olga Yesina has been a Prima Ballerina with the Wiener Staatsoper. The dancer’s repertoire includes lead roles in the classical repertoire as well as ballets by Kenneth MacMillan, William Forsythe, Jorma Elo, Patrick de Bana, Peter Wright, John Neumeier, Jerome Robbins and Maurice Béjart.")

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